Himachal Pradesh chief minister Jai Ram Thakur launched a free bike ambulance service in Shimla town on Monday. He flagged-off bike ambulances, there making the state the first in the region to launch this service.

Thakur said the bike ambulance service had been launched keeping in mind the geographical conditions of the state, which made it difficult for 108 ambulance service to reach the spot. He said the bike ambulance service would supplement the already functional 108 National Ambulance Service. The service in the first phase would be implemented in Shimla town and thereafter replicated in other parts of the state.

Himachal Pradesh was the fourth state in the country, after Tamilnadu, Karnataka and Goa, to start this bike ambulance service.